This article titled "BP Reports Most of Blame on Others" from a September 8th posting, how BP shifted the majority of the blame of the spill on various contractors instead of BP itself.BP filed a report that basically showed every step of the production of the rig, and explained where mistakes were made. BP did admit to some blame in regards to management oversight, but argued cut corners were not their fault but rather contractors.BP blamed various companies including Halliburton for faulty work. Many accuse BP of trying to take "the smallest piece of the blame pie" and refer to BP as the orchestrator of the lynch mob who defends himself by saying "I did not bring the rope!".
The ethical conundrum here is was it paramount for BP to cast blame, or was it more important to take the blame and reconcile the fact they had a major influence on factors that led up to the oil spill? It was BP's moral obligation to not only help the families of those who died, but to the millions who will be affected and the ecosystems that may also be affected. Immediate consumer backlash was seen against BP when stocks began to plummet at record rates. BP has assets to stay marginally above water, but will BP ever truly regain customer trust again?
It can be argued though that BP ,regardless of shoveling the blame all over the grid, has made a concerted effort to help relieve the Gulf Coast region both financially and environmentally. BP were the first responders to the explosion, and have acquired numerous oil cleaning supplements such as, ships,boons,dispersants etc. 'they have run add campaigns promising as long as the oil is there they will be there to clean it up. One other fact is that BP has already began to pay out damages to local businesses and relief foundations.
BP promises their values are by "to display some unchanging,fundamental qualities- integrity, honest dealing, treating everyone with respect and integrity, striving for mutual advantage and contributing to human progress". To an objective observer it may seem that BP has tried to make as good an effort as possible in this accident, but subjectively you can easily argue that they caused this very problem leading to a need to take action. The fact is only time will tell if BP remains true to their word, and remains in the Gulf Coast region until the disaster is mended.
-Timothy D. Vallario
Source: online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703453804575479273612869274.html
By. Ben Casselman and Spencer Swartz
I believe that BP needs to take a greater responsibility. While BP has made an effort to help the people and the environment affected by the oil spill, they need to stay committed to their actions. Like Tim stated, BP's lack of regard for offshore drilling precautions, put the company in this situation. In other words, they put themselves in this situation. I agree with Tim, in that, until BP finishes remedying the mess that they caused, they will not be considered to have taken responsibility. Many effects of the oil spill cannot be undone. The vast aquatic life that was displaced because of this cannot be put back. The plant life suffocated because of the oil cannot be revived. These effects will take time and only carefully focused efforts will be able to aid in this process. Also BP must tend to the people and immediate region affected by the oil spill. Once BP has done everything in their power to fix these problems, then perhaps they will be considered to have helped relieve the Gulf Coast region of this problem.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to this, BP also altered pictures to show that "serious" progress was being made. That is WRONG! Not only was the aquatic life damaged, a lot people were jobless because of this oil spill, since many people who live along the gulf are fishers. BP needs to handle the situation at a faster pace!
ReplyDeleteI also believe that BP has acted in an extremely unethical and possibly criminal way. In addition to their attempts to remove any sort of blame from themselves, they have also taken measure that actively worsen the situation. An recent article in the magazine Rolling Stone talked about their use of chemical dispersants. These dispersants are known to cause immense harm to the environment when used in large quantities, yet BP has continued to use them despite the Obama administration's seemingly futile efforts to stop them. These dispersants make the oil less visible while actively hampering the cleaning effort. It is actions like this which make BP seem so reprehensible and such an obvious example of what business ethics is not supposed to be.
ReplyDeleteJason Ganz